Harvard College Changes Freshman Advising Model, Assigns ‘Pre-Concentration Advisers’

The Harvard College Advising Programs Office rolled out significant changes to the first-year advising network, assigning incoming freshmen pre-concentration advisers during their first three semesters, according to a Wednesday statement to The Crimson.

In a break from tradition, the changes replace the first-year and sophomore academic advisers with a pre-concentration adviser assigned to students until they declare their concentration in October of their sophomore year. The 2023-24 academic year will be the final year that each residential house retains designated academic advisers for their sophomore students.

According to APO Director Aliya S. Bhimani, the College and APO jointly assessed and implemented structural changes to the advising network in July 2023.

By assigning each incoming student just one adviser across their first three semesters at the College — down from two under the previous model — the changes will provide continuity, remove “choppy transitions,” and fix the “incompatibility with new course registration timing,” Bimani wrote in a Wednesday emailed statement to The Crimson.

The new pre-concentration advisers will feature three types of University affiliates with varying degrees of familiarity with the College’s curriculum and requirements: proctors, volunteers, and non-ladder faculty who hold a part-time staff position in the APO.

Currently, freshmen are advised by a group of faculty, staff, students, and residential proctors who make up their first-year advising network. In the fall of sophomore year, students are assigned a sophomore adviser in their undergraduate House who assists with course selection and academic planning before concentration advisers are assigned.

Bhimani wrote that the changes were implemented due to challenges with the current first-year advising model — most notably, confusion with students having multiple advisers during their first three semesters and the lack of uniform training and expertise among the volunteer advisers.

The changes to academic advising come after the Faculty of Arts and Sciences voted in favor of previous term course registration in May 2022. Under the new course registration model, freshmen must register for their sophomore fall semester courses during the spring of their first year — significantly reducing the time they have to receive advising and explore academic interests.

The APO held a series of meetings on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday for Peer Advising Fellows, undergraduates who provide first-year advising alongside residential proctors. The meetings, led by APO staff, focused on equipping PAFs — undergraduates who are also still learning to navigate the new course registration system — with the knowledge to answer their freshmen advisees’ questions about fall term course registration.

—Staff writer Michelle N. Amponsah can be reached at michelle.amponsah@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X at @mnamponsah.

—Staff writer Joyce E. Kim can be reached at joyce.kim@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X at @joycekim324.